Knights claim SL title with one match remaining

It did not take long for the Ripon Christian volleyball program to make its mark in its new Southern League home, winning the championship outright with a 3-0 sweep of Gustine Thursday for its first title in over a decade.“It’s good to be able to win a league championship,” Ripon Christian head coach Tiger Shelton said. “We haven’t done that since the mid-90s. Now we’re looking forward to Mariposa.

“Our girls’ focus is to be undefeated and to secure a No. 1 ranking (in the Sac-Joaquin Division V playoffs).”

That should not be too steep a challenge for the No. 1 seed in the Division-V power ratings. Ripon Christian continued its season-long dominance, blasting Gustine 25-7, 25-10 and 25-6. Michelle Terpstra led the club with 15 assists and eight aces, while Emily Leahy chipped in with nine kills. Brittany Petlansky also added three digs.

Ripon Christian claimed its league title with a match remaining because second place Mariposa currently already has a pair of losses. The undefeated Knights could spare a loss and still close out the season as the outright champs, but that is the furthest thing from this group’s agenda.

The Knights (15-0 SL, 22-7 overall) will try and finish off a perfect season with a win over Mariposa County Tuesday. Ripon Christian mustered a hard-fought, five-game win over Mariposa in their initial meeting, but this time Mariposa will have to make the two-hour trek to Ripon.

Valley Oak LeagueSierra 3, Kimball 0

Finishing the season playing quality volleyball is the way any squad would like to finish a year, and that is exactly the case with the Timberwolves, as the club picked up their third consecutive win in a 3-0 sweep over Kimball High Thursday in Valley Oak League play.

The Timberwolves (6-7, 14-8) struggled somewhat in the opener, but focused up the rest of the way for a 25-23, 25-15, 25-16 win over the Jaguars. Alysia Atkins led Sierra with a match-high 12 kills to go along with five blocks.

Michelle Arroyo also added five kills, Chelsea Bereta led the team with four aces and Angelica Viera had 12 assists. Sarah Konecny amassed a team-high 14 digs for the Timberwolves.

Sierra is still in the hunt for a postseason berth, but it will have to continue its winning ways in the season finale as they travel to take on the East Union Lancers Tuesday. East Union is coming off a loss to Sonora, but had won five-of-six matches heading into Thursday’s loss.

Oakdale 3, Weston Ranch 0

The Cougars had no answer for the league’s second-place club, getting blasted by Oakdale 25-9, 25-12 and 25-7 Thursday.

The Cougars (5-8, 9-9) have played themselves out of the postseason hunt, losing their last five matches.

Senior outside hitter Julia Olaya led the team with four kills, while Robyn Sison added eight assists.

The Cougars will try to close out the VOL season with a win when they play host to the Lathrop Spartans Tuesday.

FreshmanSierra 2, Kimball 0

Sierra was able to cruise past the Kimball Jaguars 25-19 and 25-12 Thursday in VOL play.

“The whole team played with heart (tonight),” Sierra head coach Sarah Bloom said. “We never gave up on a single ball or single play.”

Fabby Lopez was the server extraordinaire, leading the team with four assists. Ashley Honeycutt and Gianna Lenoci both were great at the service line, and also pulled out four digs apiece. Allison Walljasper led the team with four kills.

Sierra (7-6) will try and close out the season with a win against East Union Tuesday.